EXCLUSIVE: Maxwell Talks New Album, Turning 40, and Developing a New Cologne

After a nearly four-year hiatus, 2013 ESSENCE Fest headliner Maxwell announced plans to release his highly-anticipated album, SUMMERS late summer or early fall. "This new album is another movement into experimenting with soul music, showing people that we don't paint by numbers," he said before his performance at ESSENCE Fest, adding that fans could expect him to perform the song "God's" from the forthcoming album. As to why he's so long to release SUMMERS, he added, "I don't rush to release things. I'm not in love with fame. I'm in love with the creation of music."

But the biggest surprise of the night came when Maxwell announced that he was in the middle of developing a new cologne. "It is a man's cologne, but it's a cologne that you want your girlfriend to wear," he said.